Thursday, February 22, 2007

Manny Ramirez, who received permission from the Red Sox to report late to spring training for family reasons, was scheduled to attend a car auction in New Jersey on Saturday, according to the promoter of the auction.

It wasn't immediately clear if the team was aware of Ramirez's scheduled appearance at the Atlantic City Classic Cars Auction. Boston's first full-squad workout is Thursday. Under the collective bargaining agreement, the deadline for players to report to camp is next Tuesday.

I've got a buddy who tours with the car shows, selling Toyotas. If Manny makes half as much as my friend, he'll be sitting pretty.

Manny must assume he doesn't need the extra help in spring training. His four homeruns last April proved he comes out of the gate swinging. A few more months like that, and we can look forward to Manny Auto Sales popping up on every corner. Maybe his time at the auto auction is just spring training for his next career. Like all the time Tiki Barber spent making his teeth so sparkly.